metropolitan

1 of 2

noun

met·​ro·​pol·​i·​tan ˌme-trə-ˈpä-lə-tən 

1

: the primate of an ecclesiastical province

2

: one who lives in a metropolis or displays metropolitan manners or customs

metropolitan

2 of 2

adjective

1

: of or constituting a metropolitan or his see

2

: of, relating to, or characteristic of a metropolis and sometimes including its suburbs

3

: of, relating to, or constituting a mother country as distinguished from a colony

Synonyms

Noun

• city slicker
• cosmopolitan
• cosmopolite
• slicker
• sophisticate

Examples of metropolitan in a Sentence

Noun

a TV series about the lives and loves of a group of young, attractive metropolitans

Adjective

the greater New York metropolitan area

This is one of the best seafood restaurants in metropolitan Los Angeles.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Fort Myers Known as the gateway to Southwest Florida, Fort Myers is an all-in-one vacation destination that effortlessly blends a vibrant metropolitan with tranquil beaches, cultural attractions, and great dining. —Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 29 Oct. 2024

The program was founded in 2018 with the goal of enticing knowledge workers to a budding metropolitan that could no longer be as reliant on the volatile gas and oil industries that represented a boom for Tulsa in the twentieth century, according to Tulsa Remote managing director Justin Harlan. —Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2024

Adjective

Hotel Polaris is located 30 minutes from the Colorado Springs Airport and an hour from the Denver metropolitan area. —Ashley J. Dimella Fox News, Fox News, 19 Nov. 2024

By the end of the decade, Phoenix was well consolidated as a metropolitan area, with continuous, unabated growth. —Shelby Slade, The Arizona Republic, 15 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Late Latin metropolitanus of the see of a metropolitan, from metropolita, noun, metropolitan, from Late Greek mētropolitēs, from mētropolis see of a metropolitan, from Greek, capital

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing metropolitan

• metropolitan borough

Kids Definition

metropolitan

1 of 2 noun

met·​ro·​pol·​i·​tan ˌme-trə-ˈpäl-ət-ᵊn 

1

: the head of a church province

2

: one who lives in a metropolis or who has metropolitan manners or customs

metropolitan

2 of 2 adjective

1

: of, relating to, or characteristic of a metropolis

2

: of or relating to a city and the densely populated surrounding areas